1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to technology for license management of image forming apparatuses and the like, for example.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, there are image forming apparatuses whose functionality can be extended by installing applications. Also, there are license management systems that manage the licenses of such applications. In such a license management system, a license is issued in exchange for a value (serial number, etc.) uniquely identifying the image forming apparatus serving as the installation target. Unauthorized usage that involves the application being installed on an image forming apparatus that is not an installation target is prevented by issuing such a license.
Also, in a license management system such as the above, there will be cases where, for example, when a user is moved to a different floor within the department to which he or she belongs, the user wants to use his or her current environment with an image forming apparatus in the new workspace without shifting image forming apparatuses because they are heavy. Thus, an application installed on an image forming apparatus that was in the old workspace, for example, may have to be installed on an image forming apparatus on which that application is not installed.
To realize this, two tasks will be required, namely, the task of transferring the license of the application from an image forming apparatus serving as the transfer origin to an image forming apparatus serving as the transfer destination, and the task of swapping over optional hardware required by the application. Regarding license transfer, there exists technology in which a deactivation license certifying deactivation of a license is issued by the image forming apparatus serving as the transfer origin of the license in order to prevent unauthorized transfer of the license, and transfer of the license is permitted by returning the deactivation license to the license management system (e.g., see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2006-107468).
In Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2006-107468, since the license of the transfer destination is activated only after deactivating the license of the transfer origin, a period arises in which the license is not active in either the old or the new image forming apparatus. As a means for solving this problem, there exists technology for issuing a time-limited license that enables the application to be used for a short time by the image forming apparatus serving as the transfer origin during the period that the license is deactivated (e.g., see Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2010-146302).
However, with Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2006-107468, in order to temporarily deactivate a license that is being used in one image forming apparatus and assign the license again to another image forming apparatus, the tasks of deactivating and reassigning the license are required, and these tasks also take considerable processing time. With Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2010-146302, although an application related to a license can be used during the process of moving the license as a result of issuing a time-limited license that enables the application to be operated for a fixed period in the image forming apparatus serving as the transfer origin, there is no improvement with regard to shortening the time related to license transfer. Also, there is a problem in that the user is unable to use the application in the image forming apparatus serving as the transfer destination during the period from when the time-limited license is issued by the license management system until when the application is installed in the image forming apparatus serving as the transfer destination.